


Traditions and Treats

by xxDustNight88



Series: Holmes for the Holidays [10]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, F/M, Hermione has to put up with a lot, Humor, Romance, Sherlock bakes, it doesn't go well
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-20
Updated: 2017-12-20
Packaged: 2019-02-17 14:22:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13078716
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xxDustNight88/pseuds/xxDustNight88
Summary: In which Sherlock attempts to bake Christmas treats and Hermione realizes that the holiday is about more than following traditions.





	Traditions and Treats

**Author's Note:**

  * For [NekoWeirdo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NekoWeirdo/gifts).



> Okay so I really wasn't sure this one was getting done because of having to travel and a myriad of other things right now. It's done and ready to be shared. I hope you all enjoy it. Thank you for any and all feedback!
> 
> Thank you to starrnobella for the quick beta read! Much love, xxDustNight
> 
> Disclaimer: All non-original characters, plot points, and information belongs to J.K. Rowling, BBC, or Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The story plot and dialogue belongs to me. I do not write for profit.
> 
> Written for NekoWeirdo who has been following me for quite some time. Thank you for staying with me through all my many twists and turns! I hope you love this!
> 
> Prompt: Hermione and Sherlock decide to research Christmas traditions from different parts of the world.
> 
> Song Recommendation: "Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas" by Andrew Belle  
> [Holmes for the Holidays Playlist](https://open.spotify.com/user/1246401351/playlist/1prfNYC9f8LMVVqPzgjs5l)

. . . .

" _Let your heart be light._  
From now on,  
Our troubles will be out of sight."  
\- Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas,  
Andrew Belle

. . . .

"Sherlock?"

"Sherlock?" Hermione called out sometime later when he still hadn't responded. Coming into the living room from the bedroom, she found her boyfriend sitting at the desk, eyes focused on his laptop screen. "Sherlock, do you even hear me?"

When he still didn't respond, Hermione sighed and stalked over to where he was scrolling through some seemingly random website. She was trying to make sure he was ready for Harry and Ginny's Christmas party later this evening. Standing behind him, hands on her hips and a frown upon her face, she tapped her foot impatiently.

"Do you remember when we said we were going to research Christmas traditions?" Sherlock asked, finally sitting back and setting his gaze upon her.

Hermione's face fell in confusion. She did recall a conversation about  _maybe_  trying different foods for the holidays, but that was ages ago… "Uh, yeah. I guess. What's that have to do with Harry and Ginny's party?"

"I've been scrolling through this website and thought we might try a few traditions." Standing suddenly, Sherlock walked past her and into the kitchen. He acted as if he hadn't heard her questions.

Blinking at his retreating back, Hermione felt confused. With a start, she realized he needed to be headed to the bedroom to change for the party, not to the kitchen where he was rifling through the cabinets looking for only Merlin knew what. Taking a deep, even breath, Hermione followed after him, hoping to get to the bottom of this.

"What are you doing?" she asked, setting both hands on the back of a chair as she watched Sherlock begin to place random ingredients on the countertop. Hermione ignored the fact that there were numerous chemicals and leftover experiments littering the surface as well, potentially contaminating whatever he set there. "Are you going to answer me, or are you going to continue blatantly ignoring me?"

As if finally realizing Hermione wasn't privy to whatever thought process was going through his head, Sherlock paused his search of the cupboards and turned to her. "This is for the party, Hermione. We're going to prepare pitha. I believe the Potter's will enjoy the dessert rather than the fruitcake you bought for them."

"Pitha." Hermione repeated the word. When Sherlock merely nodded, she shook her head, indicating she had no idea what that was.

"Pitha is a dessert traditionally eaten on Christmas in Bangladesh, and we just so happen to have all of the ingredients. If we hurry, we may be able to prepare it in time for the party tonight." Sherlock was obviously very eager to attempt such a feat as he began searching for clean utensils and measuring cups.

"We're meant to be at their house in two hours, Sherlock. We don't have time to bake." Hermione stepped around the table to stand next to her boyfriend. Previously, he'd not shown any interest in trying different holiday foods, until now. "Can't we just make these tomorrow? And what's wrong with my fruitcake?"

"Ginny hates fruitcake. She'll prefer these," Sherlock replied as if the answer was obvious. Sometimes she really detested that mind of his. Handing her a glass jar of molasses he said, "Here, you can do the measuring."

"I don't really think…" Seeing the hopeful look in his eyes, Hermione puffed out her cheeks as she exhaled away her frustration. Closing her eyes and running a hand through her magically straightened hair, she thought about how she would probably live to regret this. However, if Sherlock wanted to make good on a promise to celebrate traditions from around the world, that's what she would do. "Alright, fine. How much do you need?"

. . . .

They'd been late to the party, of course, the pitha taking far longer to prepare than Hermione had hoped. Even with magic helping them along, they didn't arrive until nearly two hours into the celebration. Shoving their jackets in the closet by the kitchen, Hermione watched as Sherlock proudly carried their dessert into the dining room.

"What took so long?" Ginny asked, eyeing Hermione's hair. It had started to go curly again after having run her fingers through it so many times in frustration.

"Sherlock… He insisted we try making a new dessert to bring," Hermione explained, shutting the door and then leaning back on it for support.

"I didn't think he could cook," Ginny admitted, watching as Sherlock handed the little treats to anyone willing to try.

"When it comes to chemicals and crime scenes, he's brilliant… Baking… Not so much." Sighing, Hermione gave her friend a smile. "But it made him happy, so what am I to do?"

"Are they any good?" Ginny inquired, eyebrow raised as Sherlock made his way toward them with the tray. Behind his back Harry was chewing the pitha thoughtfully, but with each passing second, his chewing slowed and his frown became more prominent.

"Uh," Hermione started to say but Sherlock interrupted.

"Good evening, Ginny. Care to try the pitha Hermione and I made?" He held out the tay, right under her nose so she wouldn't be able to back away. Hermione gave her friend what she hoped was a supportive smile and then waited patiently as Ginny took one of the little pastries.

"Sure, I don't see why not."

Sherlock beamed and then waited for her to take a bite. He looked so proud of what they'd made that Hermione didn't have the heart to tell him that Harry had just spit his out into a napkin. Hopefully, Ginny wouldn't have the same reaction. After a full minute or so, Ginny finally finished chewing and swallowed.

"Well," she began, glancing first at Hermione and then back to Sherlock. "It's definitely not something I would have tried before. Thank you for bringing them. Do you want to set the rest on the table in the kitchen?"

Sherlock nodded and then whisked past the two witches, pausing briefly to drop a kiss to Hermione's cheek. She blushed prettily, thankful for the rare show of affection in front of others. Sherlock's, eyes twinkled and he placed the pitha on the table and then wandered back into the living room and Hermione found herself unable to keep from smiling. Oh, how she adored that man. She was lucky to have stumbled into him during an MLE investigation gone awry.

"That was awful," Ginny whispered into her ear after Sherlock found Harry and Ron to talk with. Ron was overly fascinated with Sherlock, always looking forward to hearing about his latest cases. "You need to tell him."

Hermione laughed and shook her head, looping an arm through Ginny's as she watched her boyfriend and her friends. "Oh, I'm sure he knows."

"How are you so sure? He seems rather pleased with himself." Ginny quirked her head, watching Sherlock act out one of his captures.

"He snuck this into his coat pocket," Hermione said with a chuckle, revealing the rectangular dessert she'd found tucked into his pocket. She handed it to Ginny, who wrinkled her nose.

"Ew. I hate fruitcake." Nevertheless, Ginny began to unwrap the dessert and took it to the table with the other food and snack items. She gave Hermione a wink, indicating she wasn't really as disgusted as she seemed.

"He knows, which is why we brought the pitha." Meeting Sherlock's eye, she smiled affectionately. She suspected that Sherlock had forgotten about her wish to try new traditions but remembered in a moment of clarity after his case was solved. He was good for that, always getting back to her wishes when there was a chance.

"Ugh, well maybe next time you two can bring something we all actually enjoy, hmm?" Ginny gave her hip a playful bump with her own and then ventured off to scold Lily for trying to throw their cat into the Christmas tree. "How many times do I have to tell you, your cat is not an ornament!"

"Yeah, maybe…" Hermione trailed off, leaning against the door jamb as she watched her boyfriend interact with her friends. It didn't matter if they never got around to trying anymore traditions because as long as she had Sherlock and her friends at Christmas, she would be happy. And wasn't that what Christmas was all about?


End file.
